Ocean Wave Energy Converters: Analysis, Modeling, and Simulation. Some case studies.

Abstract

Wave energy has much more potential and benefits than other forms of renewable energy. It is more predictable, consistent, and controllable than wind or solar energy. In this way, an adequate infrastructure can be an alternative and also sustainable system for power supply. In this paper, different wave energy conversion mechanisms (buoys, Pelamis, and oysters) have been described. These models are implemented and simulated using the Design Modeller, ANSYS-AQWA, and WEC-SIM applications. The purpose has been to develop a complete simulation of the wave energy converter and discuss its operation. The analysis has been developed in Matlab-Simulink and both regular and irregular waves have been considered. For this, an approximation to the linear waves theory has been used. The results obtained indicate the energy absorbed from the sea waves and also the energy supplied to the power grid. The simulation results estimated with the different WEC models are comparable to the results shown by other research papers.